diff --git a/.github/RUNNERS.md b/.github/RUNNERS.md
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..1d1da77a9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/RUNNERS.md
@@ -0,0 +1,51 @@
+# Runner label catalog
+
+CI runner labels live in one place: [`.github/runners.yaml`](./runners.yaml).
+This lets a runner-image migration (OS bump, hosted-image retirement) update a
+single file instead of grepping every workflow.
+
+## How it works
+
+`runners.yaml` is the source of truth. A generated reusable workflow,
+[`.github/workflows/reusable-runner-names.yml`](./workflows/reusable-runner-names.yml),
+exports each catalog entry as a job output. Callers pull the label from that
+output instead of hardcoding it, because `runs-on:` is evaluated before any step
+runs, so a composite action cannot supply the label — a reusable workflow's
+outputs can.
+
+A catalog value is one of:
+
+- a **scalar** label (`windows-2022`) — consumed as
+  `runs-on: ${{ needs.runner_names.outputs.<key> }}`
+- a **composite label set** (`[self-hosted, Linux, X64]`) — exported as a JSON
+  array string and consumed as
+  `runs-on: ${{ fromJSON(needs.runner_names.outputs.<key>) }}`
+
+Rolling `-latest` aliases (`ubuntu-latest`, `macos-latest`, `windows-latest`)
+are intentionally left hardcoded — they are GitHub aliases, not fleet labels.
+`matrix.os` values (and `matrix.os == '...'` conditionals) are frozen logical
+identities and are not managed by the catalog.
+
+## Wiring a job
+
+```yaml
+jobs:
+  runner_names:
+    permissions:
+      contents: read
+    uses: ./.github/workflows/reusable-runner-names.yml
+
+  my-job:
+    needs: runner_names
+    runs-on: ${{ needs.runner_names.outputs.windows_2022 }}
+    steps: ...
+```
+
+## Changing a label
+
+1. Edit `.github/runners.yaml`.
+2. Regenerate: `node .github/scripts/sync-runner-names.mjs`
+3. Test: `node --test .github/scripts/test/runner-names.test.mjs`
+
+CI enforces both invariants via
+[`runner-names-validate.yml`](./workflows/runner-names-validate.yml).
diff --git a/.github/runners.yaml b/.github/runners.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..ab4613d62
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/runners.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,17 @@
+# Specialized GitHub Actions runner labels for qvac-ext-stable-diffusion.cpp CI.
+# Edit this file, then run: node .github/scripts/sync-runner-names.mjs
+#
+# ubuntu-latest / macos-latest / windows-latest are intentionally omitted; keep
+# them hardcoded as GitHub's rolling aliases.
+#
+# FORMAT CONTRACT: a flat `key: value # comment` list, one entry per line. The
+# parser (.github/scripts/lib/runner-names.mjs) is line-based, not YAML. A value
+# is EITHER a bare single label (`windows-2022`) OR a flow array of bare tokens
+# (`[self-hosted, Linux, X64]`). Do not quote values or nest maps (the parser
+# fails loudly).
+#
+# SCOPE: this catalog governs only where jobs RUN (runs-on / matrix.runner). It
+# does NOT manage `matrix.os` identities or `matrix.os == '...'` conditionals.
+
+# GitHub-hosted (pinned images)
+windows_2022: windows-2022 # Windows Server 2022 hosted x64
diff --git a/.github/scripts/lib/runner-names.mjs b/.github/scripts/lib/runner-names.mjs
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..a9a3c0fce
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/scripts/lib/runner-names.mjs
@@ -0,0 +1,255 @@
+/**
+ * Shared helpers for the qvac-ext-stable-diffusion.cpp runner-label catalog.
+ *
+ * Source of truth: .github/runners.yaml
+ * Generated consumer: .github/workflows/reusable-runner-names.yml
+ *
+ * A catalog entry is either a scalar label or an ordered array of labels
+ * (composite self-hosted set). Array entries are exported as a JSON-array
+ * string and consumed with `fromJSON(...)` in runs-on.
+ */
+import { readdirSync, readFileSync } from 'node:fs'
+import { dirname, join, resolve } from 'node:path'
+import { fileURLToPath } from 'node:url'
+
+const here = dirname(fileURLToPath(import.meta.url))
+export const repoRoot = resolve(here, '../../..')
+
+export const RUNNERS_YAML = '.github/runners.yaml'
+export const REUSABLE_WORKFLOW = '.github/workflows/reusable-runner-names.yml'
+export const REUSABLE_USES = './.github/workflows/reusable-runner-names.yml'
+
+// Workflows wired to the catalog and validated. Orchestration-only files that
+// use nothing but ubuntu-latest / the org reusable (check-approvals,
+// security-baseline) stay out of scope.
+const ADDON_WORKFLOWS = new Set(['build.yml'])
+
+const KEY = '[a-z][a-z0-9_]*'
+const COMMENT = '(?:#\\s*(.*\\S))?'
+const SCALAR_RE = new RegExp(`^(${KEY}):\\s+([^#\\[\\s'"][^#]*?)\\s*${COMMENT}\\s*$`)
+const ARRAY_RE = new RegExp(`^(${KEY}):\\s+\\[([^\\]]+)\\]\\s*${COMMENT}\\s*$`)
+
+export function parseRunnersYaml(source) {
+  const runners = []
+  const seenKeys = new Set()
+  const seenTargets = new Set()
+
+  for (const line of source.split(/\r?\n/)) {
+    const trimmed = line.trim()
+    if (!trimmed || trimmed.startsWith('#')) continue
+
+    const arrayMatch = line.match(ARRAY_RE)
+    const scalarMatch = arrayMatch ? null : line.match(SCALAR_RE)
+    if (!arrayMatch && !scalarMatch) {
+      throw new Error(`invalid runners.yaml line (expected "key: label" or "key: [a, b]"): ${JSON.stringify(line)}`)
+    }
+
+    let entry
+    if (arrayMatch) {
+      const [, key, body, description = ''] = arrayMatch
+      const labels = body.split(',').map((token) => token.trim()).filter(Boolean)
+      if (labels.length === 0) throw new Error(`empty runner array: ${JSON.stringify(line)}`)
+      for (const label of labels) {
+        if (/["'{}[\]]/.test(label)) {
+          throw new Error(`runner label must be bare, not quoted/structured: ${JSON.stringify(line)}`)
+        }
+      }
+      entry = { key, kind: 'array', labels, description }
+    } else {
+      const [, key, rawLabel, description = ''] = scalarMatch
+      const label = rawLabel.trim()
+      if (/["'{}[\]]/.test(label)) {
+        throw new Error(`runner label must be bare, not quoted/structured: ${JSON.stringify(line)}`)
+      }
+      entry = { key, kind: 'scalar', label, description }
+    }
+
+    const target = targetKeyString(entry)
+    if (seenKeys.has(entry.key)) throw new Error(`duplicate runner key: ${entry.key}`)
+    if (seenTargets.has(target)) throw new Error(`duplicate runner target: ${target}`)
+    seenKeys.add(entry.key)
+    seenTargets.add(target)
+    runners.push(entry)
+  }
+
+  if (runners.length === 0) throw new Error('runners.yaml has no entries')
+  return runners
+}
+
+/** Canonical string for a target, used for duplicate detection + matching. */
+export function targetKeyString(entry) {
+  return entry.kind === 'array' ? `[${entry.labels.join(',')}]` : entry.label
+}
+
+/** The output value the reusable exports: scalar label, or compact JSON array. */
+export function outputValue(entry) {
+  return entry.kind === 'array' ? JSON.stringify(entry.labels) : entry.label
+}
+
+/** How a caller references the output in `runs-on:`. */
+export function runsOnExpression(entry) {
+  const ref = `needs.runner_names.outputs.${entry.key}`
+  return entry.kind === 'array' ? `\${{ fromJSON(${ref}) }}` : `\${{ ${ref} }}`
+}
+
+export function loadRunners() {
+  return parseRunnersYaml(readFileSync(join(repoRoot, RUNNERS_YAML), 'utf8'))
+}
+
+export function listAddonWorkflows() {
+  const directory = join(repoRoot, '.github/workflows')
+  return readdirSync(directory)
+    .filter((name) => ADDON_WORKFLOWS.has(name))
+    .map((name) => `.github/workflows/${name}`)
+    .sort()
+}
+
+export function renderReusableWorkflow(runners) {
+  const outputsBlock = runners
+    .map((entry) => {
+      const description = entry.description || `Runner target ${targetKeyString(entry)}`
+      return [
+        `      ${entry.key}:`,
+        `        description: ${yamlDoubleQuoted(description)}`,
+        `        value: \${{ jobs.export.outputs.${entry.key} }}`,
+      ].join('\n')
+    })
+    .join('\n')
+
+  const jobOutputs = runners
+    .map((entry) => `      ${entry.key}: \${{ steps.export.outputs.${entry.key} }}`)
+    .join('\n')
+
+  const exportLines = runners
+    .map((entry) => `          echo '${entry.key}=${outputValue(entry)}' >> "$GITHUB_OUTPUT"`)
+    .join('\n')
+
+  return `# AUTO-GENERATED by .github/scripts/sync-runner-names.mjs
+# Source of truth: ${RUNNERS_YAML}
+# Do not edit this file by hand.
+
+name: Runner names
+
+on:
+  workflow_call:
+    outputs:
+${outputsBlock}
+
+permissions:
+  contents: read
+
+jobs:
+  export:
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    timeout-minutes: 5
+    outputs:
+${jobOutputs}
+    steps:
+      - name: Export runner labels
+        id: export
+        run: |
+${exportLines}
+`
+}
+
+export function assertReusableMatchesCatalog(runners, reusableSource) {
+  const expected = renderReusableWorkflow(runners)
+  if (normalizeNewlines(reusableSource) !== normalizeNewlines(expected)) {
+    throw new Error(`${REUSABLE_WORKFLOW} is out of date. Run: node .github/scripts/sync-runner-names.mjs`)
+  }
+}
+
+const LABEL_BOUNDARY_BEFORE = `(^|[\\s"'\\[,])`
+const LABEL_BOUNDARY_AFTER = `([\\s"'\\],]|$)`
+
+function escapeLabel(label) {
+  return label.replaceAll(/[.*+?^${}()|[\]\\]/g, '\\$&')
+}
+
+function normalizeArrayTokens(body) {
+  return body.split(',').map((token) => token.trim().replace(/^['"]|['"]$/g, '')).filter(Boolean)
+}
+
+function isCommentLine(line) {
+  return /^\s*#/.test(line)
+}
+
+/**
+ * Flags catalog targets hardcoded in `runs-on:` where they select the machine.
+ * Handles scalar forms (bare / quoted / inside a `${{ }}` expression) and the
+ * composite flow-array form. Frozen logical identities are intentionally NOT
+ * flagged: `matrix.os` values and `matrix.<x> == '<label>'` conditionals (the
+ * label there names an identity, not where the job runs — the runs-on value is
+ * still driven by the catalog outputs on the same line).
+ */
+export function findHardcodedLabelViolations(relativePath, source, runners) {
+  const findings = []
+  const lines = source.split(/\r?\n/)
+  const scalars = runners.filter((entry) => entry.kind === 'scalar')
+  const arrays = runners.filter((entry) => entry.kind === 'array')
+
+  for (let i = 0; i < lines.length; i++) {
+    const line = lines[i]
+    if (isCommentLine(line)) continue
+
+    const assign = line.match(/^\s+runs-on:\s*(.*?)\s*$/)
+    if (!assign) continue
+    const value = assign[1]
+
+    // Composite flow array: compare token sets against catalog array entries.
+    const arrayValue = value.match(/^\[([^\]]+)\]$/)
+    if (arrayValue) {
+      const tokens = normalizeArrayTokens(arrayValue[1])
+      const match = arrays.find((entry) => sameSet(entry.labels, tokens))
+      if (match) findings.push({ file: relativePath, line: i + 1, target: targetKeyString(match), text: line.trim() })
+      continue
+    }
+
+    // `${{ }}` expression: flag a quoted scalar label used as a VALUE. Strip
+    // `== '...'` / `!= '...'` operands first so logical-id conditionals like
+    // `matrix.os == 'macos-12'` are not mistaken for a hardcoded runner label.
+    if (value.includes('${{')) {
+      const scan = value.replace(/(==|!=)\s*(['"])[^'"]*\2/g, '')
+      const hit = scalars.find((entry) => new RegExp(`['"]${escapeLabel(entry.label)}['"]`).test(scan))
+      if (hit) findings.push({ file: relativePath, line: i + 1, target: hit.label, text: line.trim() })
+      continue
+    }
+
+    // Bare / quoted scalar.
+    const hit = scalars.find((entry) =>
+      new RegExp(`${LABEL_BOUNDARY_BEFORE}${escapeLabel(entry.label)}${LABEL_BOUNDARY_AFTER}`).test(value),
+    )
+    if (hit) findings.push({ file: relativePath, line: i + 1, target: hit.label, text: line.trim() })
+  }
+
+  return findings
+}
+
+export function hasRunnerNamesJob(source) {
+  return /^\s+runner_names:\s*$/m.test(source) && source.includes(`uses: ${REUSABLE_USES}`)
+}
+
+export function findMissingRunnerNamesNeeds(relativePath, source) {
+  if (!source.includes('needs.runner_names.outputs')) return []
+  if (hasRunnerNamesJob(source)) return []
+  return [{ file: relativePath, message: `references needs.runner_names.outputs but has no runner_names job using ${REUSABLE_USES}` }]
+}
+
+function sameSet(a, b) {
+  if (a.length !== b.length) return false
+  const sortedA = [...a].sort()
+  const sortedB = [...b].sort()
+  return sortedA.every((value, index) => value === sortedB[index])
+}
+
+function yamlDoubleQuoted(value) {
+  return `"${value.replaceAll('\\', '\\\\').replaceAll('"', '\\"')}"`
+}
+
+function normalizeNewlines(text) {
+  return text.replaceAll('\r\n', '\n')
+}
+
+export function readRepoFile(relativePath) {
+  return readFileSync(join(repoRoot, relativePath), 'utf8')
+}
diff --git a/.github/scripts/sync-runner-names.mjs b/.github/scripts/sync-runner-names.mjs
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..ebcaa1f0f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/scripts/sync-runner-names.mjs
@@ -0,0 +1,15 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env node
+/**
+ * Regenerate .github/workflows/reusable-runner-names.yml from .github/runners.yaml.
+ *
+ * After editing the catalog:
+ *   node .github/scripts/sync-runner-names.mjs
+ *   node --test .github/scripts/test/runner-names.test.mjs
+ */
+import { writeFileSync } from 'node:fs'
+import { join } from 'node:path'
+import { REUSABLE_WORKFLOW, RUNNERS_YAML, loadRunners, renderReusableWorkflow, repoRoot } from './lib/runner-names.mjs'
+
+const runners = loadRunners()
+writeFileSync(join(repoRoot, REUSABLE_WORKFLOW), renderReusableWorkflow(runners), 'utf8')
+console.log(`wrote ${REUSABLE_WORKFLOW} (${runners.length} targets from ${RUNNERS_YAML})`)
diff --git a/.github/scripts/validate-runner-names.mjs b/.github/scripts/validate-runner-names.mjs
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..1958dd323
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/scripts/validate-runner-names.mjs
@@ -0,0 +1,47 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env node
+/**
+ * Fail if CI workflows hardcode catalog runner targets or drift from the
+ * generated reusable-runner-names workflow.
+ *
+ * Usage: node .github/scripts/validate-runner-names.mjs
+ */
+import {
+  REUSABLE_WORKFLOW,
+  assertReusableMatchesCatalog,
+  findHardcodedLabelViolations,
+  findMissingRunnerNamesNeeds,
+  listAddonWorkflows,
+  loadRunners,
+  readRepoFile,
+} from './lib/runner-names.mjs'
+
+function main() {
+  const runners = loadRunners()
+  const errors = []
+
+  try {
+    assertReusableMatchesCatalog(runners, readRepoFile(REUSABLE_WORKFLOW))
+  } catch (error) {
+    errors.push(error.message)
+  }
+
+  for (const file of listAddonWorkflows()) {
+    const source = readRepoFile(file)
+    for (const finding of findHardcodedLabelViolations(file, source, runners)) {
+      errors.push(`${finding.file}:${finding.line} hardcodes runner target ${finding.target}: ${finding.text}`)
+    }
+    for (const finding of findMissingRunnerNamesNeeds(file, source)) {
+      errors.push(`${finding.file}: ${finding.message}`)
+    }
+  }
+
+  if (errors.length > 0) {
+    console.error(`validate-runner-names: ${errors.length} finding(s):`)
+    for (const error of errors) console.error(`  ${error}`)
+    process.exit(1)
+  }
+
+  console.log(`validate-runner-names: ok (${runners.length} targets, ${listAddonWorkflows().length} workflow(s))`)
+}
+
+main()
diff --git a/.github/workflows/build.yml b/.github/workflows/build.yml
index b2da00dc1..32dfac655 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/build.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/build.yml
@@ -43,6 +43,11 @@ concurrency:
   cancel-in-progress: true
 
 jobs:
+  runner_names:
+    permissions:
+      contents: read
+    uses: ./.github/workflows/reusable-runner-names.yml
+
   ubuntu-latest-cmake:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
 
@@ -267,8 +272,8 @@ jobs:
             sd-${{ env.BRANCH_NAME }}-${{ steps.commit.outputs.short }}-bin-${{ steps.system-info.outputs.OS_TYPE }}-${{ steps.system-info.outputs.OS_NAME }}-${{ steps.system-info.outputs.OS_VERSION }}-${{ steps.system-info.outputs.CPU_ARCH }}.zip
 
   windows-latest-cmake:
-    runs-on: windows-2022
-
+    needs: runner_names
+    runs-on: ${{ needs.runner_names.outputs.windows_2022 }}
     env:
       VULKAN_VERSION: 1.4.328.1
 
@@ -388,8 +393,8 @@ jobs:
             sd-${{ env.BRANCH_NAME }}-${{ steps.commit.outputs.short }}-bin-win-${{ matrix.build }}-x64.zip
 
   windows-latest-cmake-hip:
-    runs-on: windows-2022
-
+    needs: runner_names
+    runs-on: ${{ needs.runner_names.outputs.windows_2022 }}
     env:
       HIPSDK_INSTALLER_VERSION: "25.Q3"
       GPU_TARGETS: "gfx1151;gfx1200;gfx1201;gfx1100;gfx1101;gfx1102;gfx1030;gfx1031;gfx1032"
@@ -693,3 +698,4 @@ jobs:
                 });
               }
             }
+
diff --git a/.github/workflows/reusable-runner-names.yml b/.github/workflows/reusable-runner-names.yml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..e4963b9aa
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/reusable-runner-names.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,27 @@
+# AUTO-GENERATED by .github/scripts/sync-runner-names.mjs
+# Source of truth: .github/runners.yaml
+# Do not edit this file by hand.
+
+name: Runner names
+
+on:
+  workflow_call:
+    outputs:
+      windows_2022:
+        description: "Windows Server 2022 hosted x64"
+        value: ${{ jobs.export.outputs.windows_2022 }}
+
+permissions:
+  contents: read
+
+jobs:
+  export:
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    timeout-minutes: 5
+    outputs:
+      windows_2022: ${{ steps.export.outputs.windows_2022 }}
+    steps:
+      - name: Export runner labels
+        id: export
+        run: |
+          echo 'windows_2022=windows-2022' >> "$GITHUB_OUTPUT"
diff --git a/.github/workflows/runner-names-validate.yml b/.github/workflows/runner-names-validate.yml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..e170af1d3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/runner-names-validate.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,32 @@
+name: Runner names validate
+
+# Enforces the runner-label catalog: the generated reusable workflow stays in
+# sync with .github/runners.yaml, and no wired workflow hardcodes a catalog
+# runner target. See .github/RUNNERS.md.
+
+on:
+  push:
+    branches: [master]
+    paths:
+      - '.github/runners.yaml'
+      - '.github/workflows/**'
+      - '.github/scripts/**'
+  pull_request:
+    paths:
+      - '.github/runners.yaml'
+      - '.github/workflows/**'
+      - '.github/scripts/**'
+
+permissions:
+  contents: read
+
+jobs:
+  validate:
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    timeout-minutes: 10
+    steps:
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
+      - name: Validate runner-name catalog (in sync + no hardcoded labels)
+        run: node .github/scripts/validate-runner-names.mjs
+      - name: Unit tests
+        run: node --test .github/scripts/test/runner-names.test.mjs